FRONTDoor Franchise
Cost, fees, owner earnings, closure rate and litigation for a FRONTDoor franchise — pulled from the franchisor's own public FDD (2025), not its sales material.
Disclosure honesty
FRONTDoor discloses little or no owner-earnings data (Item 19) — the franchisor won't put real profit in writing.
What their own earnings claim actually says
No financial performance representations made. Franchisor explicitly disclaims any past/future financial performance claims by franchisor or agents.
What a FRONTDoor franchise actually costs to run
| Fee | Disclosed | Where it comes from |
|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee | $50,000 | Item 5 — paid up front, before you open |
| Royalty | 8% of gross sales | Item 6 — charged on revenue, not profit |
| Advertising fund | 2% of gross sales | Item 6 — brand marketing, spent at the franchisor's discretion |
| Total recurring fees | 10% of gross sales | Before rent, labor, food or debt service |
| Total initial investment | $125,375 – $465,770 | Item 7 — franchisor's own low/high estimate |
8% royalty + technology ($625/mo), telematics ($55/mo per vehicle), fleet solutions ($100+/mo per vehicle), expedited payment (2.0-2.5%), conference ($1,500), audit/compliance penalties up to 20% management service fee.
Royalty and ad-fund percentages are charged on gross sales — an owner pays them whether or not the location is profitable.
FRONTDoor system size and owner turnover
| Total outlets | 23 |
| Ceased operations | 0 |
| Terminated by franchisor | 0 |
| Transferred to new owners | 1 |
| Closure rate | 0.0% of outlets |
Zero terminations/closures in 2024; one transfer; modest 4.5% net growth 2023-2024.
From Item 20 of the FDD 2025. Terminations and ceased operations are the franchisor's own count of owners who stopped — the number the sales pitch leaves out.
Is FRONTDoor worth it? — how it compares to 436 similar franchises
| Ongoing fees | 10% of sales | steeper than 74% of other franchises franchises |
| Startup cost | from $125,375 | about average (median $138,750) |
| Disclosure honesty | Grade F | less honest than most of the category |
| Closure rate | 0.0% of outlets | better than most (median 1.5%) |
| Disclosed lawsuits | 0 | fewer than most |
Benchmarked against every other franchises franchise we've graded from public FDDs — the context the franchisor's pitch never gives you.
Owner take-home for a FRONTDoor
The franchisor's framing: No financial performance representations made. Franchisor explicitly disclaims any past/fu… We reconstruct what an owner actually keeps, from their own FDD.
- Reconstructed owner P&L — net take-home after royalty, ad fund, rent, labor & debt
- Break-even timeline + cash-on-cash ROI
- Full fee stack + required-purchase markups
- Decoded real failure / closure rate
- How it ranks vs comparable franchises
- Validation-call playbook — the exact questions to ask
See a full sample report → · 30-day guarantee
FRONTDoor franchise — frequently asked
- How much does a FRONTDoor franchise cost?
- The FDD lists a total initial investment of about $125,375–$465,770, including a $50,000 initial franchise fee.
- How much do FRONTDoor franchise owners make?
- FRONTDoor discloses little or no earnings data (Item 19) — meaning the franchisor won't put real owner profit in writing. That's a red flag worth questioning.
- What are the FRONTDoor franchise fees?
- FRONTDoor's FDD discloses a $50,000 initial franchise fee, a 8% royalty on gross sales, a 2% advertising-fund contribution, for roughly 10% of gross sales in recurring fees before rent, labor, or debt service. 8% royalty + technology ($625/mo), telematics ($55/mo per vehicle), fleet solutions ($100+/mo per vehicle), expedited payment (2.0-2.5%), conference ($1,500), audit/compliance penalties up to 20% management service fee.
- What is the FRONTDoor franchise profit margin?
- FRONTDoor discloses no Item 19 earnings representation, so no profit margin can be derived from the FDD at all. Any margin figure quoted elsewhere is an estimate, not a disclosure.
- What is the FRONTDoor franchise failure rate?
- Zero terminations/closures in 2024; one transfer; modest 4.5% net growth 2023-2024.
- How many FRONTDoor locations are there?
- FRONTDoor's FDD reports 23 total outlets, with 0 that ceased operations in the most recent reporting year and 1 transferred to new owners. Item 20 is where system health shows up before the marketing does.
- Does FRONTDoor have complaints or lawsuits?
- FRONTDoor discloses no material litigation in Item 3 of the filing we reviewed. That's a positive signal, though it covers only what the franchisor is required to report.
- Is a FRONTDoor franchise worth it?
- It depends on the numbers, not the pitch. FRONTDoor scores F on disclosure honesty, carries about 10% of sales in ongoing fees. Get the real owner take-home before you sign.
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Compare FRONTDoor to similar franchises
See all franchises ranked by disclosure honesty →
Source: MN CARDS 35065-202511-02 (Clean FDD 2025). FranchiseValidate is independent and not affiliated with FRONTDoor or its franchisor. Figures are extracted from the franchisor's own public disclosure document; verify against the current FDD before any decision.